I'm 24, and a CFI. I still hate PFT. I also know that in the long run, you're really not helping youself because you're not only cheating others, you're cheating yourself. By working for lower wages now, you're just lowering the bar for each and every person above you on the food chain. This is the race to the bottom we all talk about.

Yeah, I paid for my ratings. The flight schools I went to were providing a service to me for the fees I paid. When you do a PFT program like Gulfstream you're not only paying for those ratings, you're then paying to train for a job (you already have your comm rating, so you're paying for additional training) which is something that only is seen in this industry. Add to that the 'wages' you're being paid while playing 121 FO and you're at a net loss for the program. In my mind, that means you're paying to work for them. Unless I'm renting the plane for my leisure, I'm being compensated for my time.

I guess I still fail to understand the point in spending that much money to get a job that won't pay the bills. Maybe I'm weird or something...